“I had the chance to meet with many patients and hear their FMD stories, and to see as FMD patients we all have so many different stories to tell. It was very inspiring to be in the room with so many patients and FMD experts and see the exchange of information and experiences.

For me personally, one thing that stands out from the patient meeting was hearing from the patients. Families who have had several members diagnosed, this is not something I have had experience of in Belgium – yet! It was also great to hear from younger FMD patients, some diagnosed since childhood, and also from some of the men within the group.

It highlights for me the importance of patients sharing their stories within a group to help provide support within that community. The FMDSA already have patient stories on their website and it is something we are working on for the FMD-Be website.”

In terms of information given during the meeting:

The US registry – now has 1663 patients enrolled in 14 centres.

-the most common manifestations of FMD are headaches, high blood pressure, followed by pulsatile tinnitus (whooshing), dizziness, cervical bruit and neck pain.

– mean age at diagnosis is 47 years, but it can be found at any age.

-men with FMD are more likely to have renal or visceral artery involvement, and are twice as likely to have dissection or aneurysm than women.

-some patients in the registry have now been followed for eight years.

-paediatric patients are more likely to have renal or mesenteric involvement, or middle aortic syndrome.

FMD and SCAD – they are clearly associated, and the link is being closely scrutinised.

It is now felt that up to 70% of women who suffer SCAD may have FMD (and not just in the coronary arteries), however, it is considered much rarer for an FMD patient to go on to suffer SCAD.